A building security system manufacturer was having problems fulfilling increased consumer demand for their product. Seeking to automate an assembly line of three product configurations with connectivity to their QMS system and compliance to ESD standards, they sought out a Bright Machines®Microfactory solution to help them scale up production while also save on costs.
Applications used
Problem
Labor shortages and hiring challenges created a significant bottleneck that prevented this customer’s line from scaling up to meet increased demand. Demand for the control panels had grown to more than one million units per year – but even maintaining a build rate of 40% of that was proving to be a challenge.
Solution
With a Bright Machines Microfactory, discrete assembly tasks previously done manually can now be performed with the assistance of robotic cells guided by intelligent software.
Microfactory configuration
Due to the complexity of the product, the customer needed a line that could perform not only complicated pick-and-place and screwdriving tasks, but an array of functional tests that have traditionally been considered too difficult to automate. Bright Machines designed a line that could allow the customer to increase production by 70% over the former eight-person crew, leading to an output of over one million units per year. In addition, it enabled further production cost savings of over 30% over the manual assembly lines.
Based on internal company tests and projections.